Mythos
by rationalbookworm
Summary: AU. Gods walk among us, unknown to the mortal world, their past lives all but forgotten...that is until old religions start to collide, setting in motion a series of events that reveals hidden myths.
1. Chapter 1

**So I was gonna wait to start this story until after I finished The New Frontier, but I've been really really stuck on that one so I started this to try and help my uber writer's block and suddenly I have one of the longest chapters I've ever written. I can't guarantee I'll be updating this often or even anytime soon, but I figured I may as well post it. Also can't promise that all the chapters will be this length. Anywho...enjoy :D**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Almighty Johnsons nor do I profit from this story. Anything familiar was taken right off the show and I have no rights to it whatsoever.**

The flat was nice, spacious, two bedrooms, one bath. Perfect for Jane and her younger sister Ariel while they were in New Zealand. Which could be quite a while. Jane had a good feeling about this place. So she didn't hesitate to put down a large security deposit and sign all the papers within an hour of seeing the place. She called her sister as she made her way out of the realtor's office just as the sun sank over the horizon.

"Anything?" Ariel asked by way of greeting. She hated staying in the tiny bed and breakfast with the overly friendly old couple who ran the place. Even Jane's patience was wearing thin.

"Yep," she smiled, walking down the street a little to where she parked. "Two bed, one bath – so we'll have to share, but the rooms are nice and big and the living room and kitchen are decent. And bonus! It's already furnished. I mean, it's not designer, but it'll do."

"Fine. When do we move in?"

Jane tipped her head back to look at the swiftly darkening sky, "Tomorrow, after our morning run. It's too late to do anything tonight."

Ariel sighed sadly, "Alright. I guess one more night won't hurt."

"I'll be back in a few." Hanging up, she shoved her cell into the inside pocket of her stylish black leather jacket, zipping it up to keep it from flapping around while she was on the road. She shook her loose blonde curls out of her face before pulling the dark pink helmet on and throwing her leg over her motorcycle.

The streets were pretty much bare as she flew across the pavement, heart racing with the adrenaline rush riding her motorcycle always gave her. This was her way of escaping from the world, to just relax and allow her thoughts to flow freely without being weighed down by worry. Running helped too, but nothing could compare to hopping onto her bike whenever things became too much and just flying away. It was the main reason she always had it sent to her wherever she and Ariel traveled, despite how much of a bitch it was to send it all over the world without getting a scratch on it. She was lucky her photography was so popular and she could afford it.

A flash of light in the sky caught her eyes, followed by a few others. Glancing up she could see beautiful shooting stars falling through the inky black space above. A chill ran down her spine as the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. Something about the meteor shower seemed…wrong. Like it wasn't just ordinary rock falling through space. It _meant_ something. She was sure of it.

Suddenly, a car swerved around the corner at a break neck speed, forcing Jane to swerve up onto the curve and nearly crash into three innocent bystanders outside a liquor store. One fell backward onto the ground as she screeched to a halt nearby. Sighing she removed her helmet in time to see the dark colored car stop and a petite blonde woman with multiple tattoos run over apologizing.

"I'm so sorry," she said, eyes flickering between Jane and the boy still on the ground as his friend knelt nearby. Another boy was by their dropped liquor, checking for 'survivors'. The blonde gestured to the sky, "I was looking up when I should have been watching the road. Is everyone alright?"

"Yeah!" the boy who'd fallen hopped up like an over-eager puppy. "Great!"

The blonde looked over to Jane who smiled politely, getting an off-feeling from the hard-eyed woman, "I'm fine. No harm done."

The boy turned to look at her, eyes darting up and down her body, "Oh! You're American? On vacation?"

She shook her head, hoping for a quick exit. She wasn't really in the mood to be hit on tonight. "Just moved here actually."

"Oh well, you should come by our flat. We're having a party. It could be like a welcome to New Zealand sort of thing." He quickly turned to the blonde as well, ignoring his female friend's disappointed look. "You too. It's one of a string of parties to prepare for my twenty-first."

"Oh, Happy Birthday!" the blonde smiled tightly. "Tell you what, let me buy you some more beers. Call it a birthday present."

"Ta!" the boy turned back to Jane, waiting for an answer.

"Thanks, but I can't," she flashed a small smile. "I should be getting home before I'm missed."

"Oh right. Well…nice meeting you I suppose."

She waved vaguely before slipping her helmet back on and steering her bike back onto the road, disappearing around a corner before they'd even taken a step.

The rest of the drive was extremely uneventful. However, Jane had just whipped her helmet off and shook out her hair when she suddenly was thrown off balance. The ground beneath her feet began shaking violently, throwing her to the ground hard. She hissed in pain, landing in the rough gravel. She could feel the tiny rocks scrape against the side of her face. Her arm was twisted weirdly under her from her trying to brace herself and she wouldn't be surprised if her wrist was broken or at the very least sprained. Another cry of pain was ripped from her throat as her bike toppled over onto her legs, the metal cutting through her jeans and into her skin. Great. That warranted a trip to the hospital. Welcome to New Zealand!

Her snarky thoughts were cut off as the Earth finally settled once again. Groaning, Jane heaved herself onto her elbows. Her left wrist was throbbing slightly. She doubted she'd be able to use it to lift the bike off her and she was in no way strong enough to lift it one-handed. That left one option.

Dropping back down to the ground with a grunt, she dug her cell out of her pocket and speed-dialed Ariel.

"Jane! Are you alright? Please tell me you still aren't on the road," Ariel's frantic voice drowned out most of the background noise, but Jane could still hear people speaking quietly.

"I had just parked when it hit. You're gonna have to come out and dig me out from under my bike though," Jane was surprised by how calm she sounded.

"WHAT!" Ariel screeched. There was a muffled thud, probably her dropping the phone, and raised voices. Jane dropped her phone to the ground beside her and waited as hurried footsteps finally approached her.

"Oh my God!" Ariel dropped down next to her. "Oh, Jane. Just lie still okay?"

"Yeah, 'cause I can totally do otherwise."

"Shush," the younger woman turned to yell over her shoulder, "Mrs. Cooper! Call an ambulance! Jane's hurt."

She really wanted to argue that she didn't need an ambulance, just a lift to the hospital, but she could tell Ariel was on the verge of hysterics and wasn't likely to listen. Instead, Jane lay with her head in her sister's lap and silently allowed her and Mr. Cooper, who had rushed out to see what he could do to help, to fret over her.

* * *

Her wrist was sprained badly, but not broken. Still the hospital had put it into a brace after she "accidentally" used her wrist too often while there, exasperating the problem. Apparently, she couldn't be trusted to keep it still long enough to heal. Her legs had been badly cut and bruised, but luckily she hadn't moved much once the bike was on top of her, so the cuts weren't too deep. She was extremely sore the next morning though. Didn't stop her from rolling out of bed at the butt crack of dawn and dragging Ariel out for a morning run, however.

They ran along the beach today, along with a few other runners. People were scattered along the sand, and a crowd was starting to form, staring out over the water. It was a little strange, but Jane and Ariel ignored them. For all they knew, this was normal behavior for the locals.

Jane focused on her breathing instead of the slight pain in her protesting legs. Till I Collapse by Eminem filtered through her earphones, giving her a steady beat to run too, her feet hitting the pavement in time with the music. A nudge from Ariel snapped her out of her usual running trance. She blinked her dark hazel eyes at her younger sister. The taller woman motioned behind them and Jane turned her head slightly to see an attractive dark haired man running behind them looking determined to catch up to them.

Smirking Ariel pushed ahead, forcing Jane to speed up as well. The footfalls behind them slowed to a stop soon after, the man giving up. Ariel turned over her shoulder to shout, "Better luck next time!"

Jane rolled her eyes before a glimpse of red out of the corner of her eye had her slamming on the breaks. Now she understood what everyone was looking at. The water wasn't the normal steel gray-blue, but red. A deep blood red was seeping around staining the sea. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end as goosebumps appeared on her skin.

"Whoa," Ariel breathed beside her. "Have you ever seen anything like this?"

Jane shook her head, staying silent. Instead, she turned and continued on her run, deciding to put all these strange occurrences behind her. Or at least worry about them later.

Once they were back at the bed and breakfast, both women showered and dressed for the day. After a short debate, where Ariel practically shoved Jane out the door, it was decided that Jane would spend the day exploring and taking pictures. It had been a while since she'd had the luxury to just wander and Ariel was more than capable of gathering the meager belongings scattered around the bed and breakfast and call the storage facility that was currently housing everything else.

The scenery was gorgeous. There was no other word Jane could think of as she meandered through the surrounding woods. To most it would probably appear to be like any other leaf and pine needle covered ground, trees and other foliage clumped together as mist swirled around. But to Jane's artistic eye, it appeared to be a mystical wonderland just waiting to be discovered. Completely deserted, the endless chilly woodland seemed almost haunted in its loneliness. Which was why Jane almost jumped out of her skin when she heard the deep male voices echoing hollowly through the trees.

Gently tucking her professional camera back into the bag resting against her hip, she inched forward, careful not to make too much noise. She peeked around a tree in time to see a man in his thirties throwing a sword at a younger guy (early twenties at most). Well, it was more thrown past him really, lodging deeply into a nearby tree. Jane sucked in a breath as the younger man turned to confront the other, only to be stopped by another slightly older man she hadn't noticed before. Ignoring what she now realized to be five men in total, she leaned forward slightly to see the hilt of the sword. She sighed. Of course, because she just couldn't have a nice, normal experience to introduce her to New Zealand.

Turning back to the men, she noticed they had settled down, all standing around as the youngest looked at them questioningly. She took a moment to study them only to have her stomach lurch. She recognized the youngest from her near accident outside of the liquor store. He'd been the one to invite her to the party. His birthday party. His twenty-first, he'd said. Things were starting to make sense.

He was kind of cute, in a puppy/baby brother sort of way. He had short brown hair and a round baby face. He was however, freakishly tall; taller than three of the other men. The only one the same height as him was the strange bald dude wearing jeans, a t-shirt, and sandals like it wasn't freezing outside. The eldest – the one who threw the sword – had black hair that curled just above his collar. He had a few grays, especially in his scruff, but still looked quite fit. He held himself high, though he was one of the shortest, as if he were the head of this rag-tag group. The shortest man also appeared to be the cockiest, standing off to one side, hands deep in his pockets, smirk firmly in place. His dark blonde curls and more refined good looks set him apart from the others just as much as he seemed to hold himself away.

The last man drew Jane's eye the most, she reluctantly admitted internally. It was the contrasts, she thought. His black cropped hair and heavy brow with his almost deathly white skin captured her attention more than any of the others. They all looked fit, athletic, but he had something more. She couldn't quite put her finger on what. Whatever it was, though, had her wanting to curl up close to him and allow him to wrap his arms around her. She instinctively knew she would feel safe and content there. Slinking further back behind her tree, Jane tried to shake off the feeling, not liking how vulnerable it made her seem.

"Get the sword," the eldest finally spoke, drawing her out of her thoughts. He was staring down the youngest. "Get it and bring it here."

Birthday boy looked to the bald man who nodded, before turning back to where the sword still rested in the tree trunk. He struggled for a few moments before muttering something Jane couldn't understand.

"I told you," the eldest called. "I'm Ullr."

Jane smiled slightly, understanding lighting her features momentarily. She never studied Norse mythology deeply, not really needing to, but she was familiar with some of their Gods, Ullr being one of them.

The youngest grunted out something else.

"God of the hunt," Ullr replied, apparently hearing him clearly. "Among other things."

"Such a waste," Blondie cut in.

"Don't start," Ullr growled lowly. "Just pull the bloody sword out, come back here, and family oracle Olaf will explain."

"Family what?" he huffed out, still struggling with the sword.

"Some Gods are also oracles. They know shit." Jane snorted quietly. That was one way to put it. "We have Olaf." The bald guy grinned proudly.

Finally the sword came out, the boy flying back and landing hard in the dirt. The bald man, Olaf, stepped over to help him up, picking up the sword as well, "I know this is messing with your head. Look, my mother and father were Gods, so I'm a God. My son was a God. He married your mother who was a Goddess."

"And when the spawn of a God and a Goddess turn twenty-one they too become a God. Okay?" Ullr finished, sounding exasperated.

"That's what we're doing here today," Olaf continued. "Turning you into a God." Jane snorted again. That was a bit melodramatic

Birthday Boy nodded, "Which just happens to be on the day of my twenty-first. Yeah, right."

"This is the ancient ceremony the twenty-first parties is based on," Olaf explained, gesturing with the sword at the circle on the ground formed by unassuming rocks. Jane could just make them out amongst the usual forest debris.

Chuckling humorlessly, the youngest shook his head, "Nah! No way are you dicks Gods! If you're Gods, than what are your God powers?"

Olaf lifted his arms, "I'm ninety-two years old."

"Yeah right."

"The power of my poetry bends mortals to my will," Blondie explained, sounding far too smug for his own good.

"As long as they're blonde and stupid." Finally, the one who continually drew her eye throughout the conversation spoke. His deep voice sent a thrill down her spine that she really didn't want to contemplate at the moment.

"It works on lots of people," Blondie countered.

"Mainly stupid blonde ones you want to screw," he bickered back, making Jane bite her lip so as not to start laughing and give herself away.

"At least I do more than make the room slightly colder."

The pale, dark haired man turned, mouth open to volley back an insult only to be interrupted by Ullr.

"Will you two shut the fuck up?" he sounded like a long suffering man who was constantly put in between his family during feuds. Jane could sympathize. Her two sisters and brother constantly went to her as a mediator.

"Thing is, over the last few thousand years our powers have, well, diminished. So mostly there not that powerful. At all."

They all stood still a moment, no one speaking as they let the information settle in the still-disbelieving Birthday Boy.

The man who could apparently make a room colder, turned to Ullr, "Do the paper, rock, scissors thing. That freaked me out on my twenty-first."

"What so, Ullr is the God of paper rock scissors?" Birthday Boy joked feebly.

"Of all games actually," Ullr said seriously. Taking a deep breath and glancing at his brothers, he nodded. "Okay, let's do it."

"Oh, Mike's gonna use his powers. Must be important," Blondie joked. Everyone ignored him.

"Paper, rock, scissors," Ullr – or Mike – said, moving to stand in front of the youngest. "If after this, you believe, you do exactly what I say."

"After paper, rock, scissors? Whatever."

Jane leaned further out, trying to see around Olaf who was standing with his back toward her and was slightly in the way. She watched as time and time again Mike won paper, rock, scissors and the boy became more and more frustrated. Ullr didn't even have to look at what they were doing, glancing around at the others, and he still won. Her twin, Guy, would be impressed, she was sure.

"The laws of probability don't apply to Mike." Jane was sure he had said something before that, but his voice was so deep and soothing it had taken her a minute to register the words. She shook her head. What the hell was with that? She was never affected by men like that.

He sighed, "Why can't I get something fun?"

Finally Mike ended the game with an unnecessary flourish. The boy looked stunned. The men moved to the outside of the rock circle and Mike nodded to the boy.

"Step into the circle."

"The stones are from Asgard," Olaf explained, once again using the sword as a pointer. "Norse God home."

Hesitantly, the boy stepped forward, only to be stopped by Blondie saying, "Oh, take off your clothes."

"What?"

"You don't have to," Olaf assured.

"Trust me," Blondie continued. "Take off your clothes."

The cold room guy rolled his eyes, "Gayest God ever."

"I loved that jacket. It was totally ruined."

"What happened to the jacket?" the boy asked worriedly.

"Just forget about the Jacket," Mike cut in. "You said you'd do what I say, and…yeah, actually it's probably best."

"You're not gonna film this and play it at the party right?"

"No, Axl. This stays between us. That's the way it's always been and the way that it has to be."

They stared at each other for a moment before the boy, Axl, sighed and began to strip. Fighting back a laugh, Jane hid back behind her tree in order to regain control. When she risked peeking around the trunk again, Axl was standing embarrassedly in front of the others, one hand cupping his privates.

Mike nodded, "Okay. Circle."

Sighing, Axl stepped forward. Olaf met him in the middle, holding out the sword. Jane involuntarily took a step forward, sensing the magnitude of the moment. She had never seen a Norse God gaining his powers and couldn't help her curiosity as she moved silently to a closer tree.

"Hold it over your head," Olaf instructed, glancing at the sky.

"What for?" Axl slowly took the sword from his grandfather.

"For the lightning bolt," he answered bluntly.

Axl's eyes widened comically.

"Couldn't you just say the sign, Grandpa?" Mike asked wryly.

"For the sign," Olaf corrected himself.

But the damage was done. Nervously, Axl raised his arm looking like he was bracing himself for the worst. Slowly the others inched away.

"What're you doing?" Axl asked, glancing at his family.

"Nothing," the cold guy assured, smiling slightly.

"Just getting a better view," Blondie smirked.

Holding the sword high, Axl began to protest as Jane moved a little closer, not bothering with the trees when everyone's focus was on the God-to-be. Suddenly, a bright yellow-white light shot down from the sky, encompassing all of Axl so one could hardly make out a humanoid figure standing in the middle. The back lash of all that power sent the others ducking for cover.

All except Olaf who was sent flying back from a stray bolt. Jane watched in horror as he collapsed in a smoking heap a few feet away, only to turn in time to see another bolt coming straight for her.

_Shit_! She thought a second before she felt immense power surging through her veins. At the same time a sort of peace temporarily enveloped her as she hovered on the edge consciousness. Faces, names, and emotions of a past life floated through her mind as she struggled to focus. Blinking dolefully up at the canopy above her, she forced her vision to sharpen, though the slightly fuzzy edges refused to go away.

A face appeared above her, all dark and light, and her heart skipped a beat. _Hodr._ His lips moved, but no sound came out. She continued to blink, straining against the darkness threatening to overcome her. Faintly, she felt a large cool palm press against her cheek, but instead of grounding her, keeping her awake, her eyes fluttered shut and she sighed, nuzzling into the comforting touch. Maybe the darkness wouldn't be too bad, after all.


	2. Chapter 2

**I am not happy with this chapter at all, but I honestly have no idea how to fix it so...yeah. Hope it doesn't disappoint too much.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own nothin'**

"That was intense!" Anders said unhelpfully. Ty resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Mostly.

As Axl began hopping around with excitement ("Am I a God now? I feel like a God!") and Mike tried unsuccessfully to calm him down, Ty felt a cold dead weight settle in his stomach. He shifted uneasily, wiping his now sweaty palms on his jeans as he tried to concentrate on the conversation in front of him. A dull ringing in his ears was distracting him and everything was going fuzzy around the edges. He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, hoping to clear his vision a bit, but when he opened his eyes again, it was the same.

"Where's Olaf?" someone questioned, bringing him back to the present, even if something was clearly still wrong with him.

Glancing around as best he could, he squinted toward his left, pointing to what appeared to him as a dark mist or smoke coming unnaturally off the ground, "Wh-what's that?"

Mike, Anders, and a still nude Axl hurried in that direction with Ty following close behind at a slower pace. He was afraid he might trip or something with his hearing and vision off kilter. As he drew closer, listening to the others trying to wake Olaf (there was also something about Odin thrown in there – he'd find out more later), he happened to glance away for a second, whipping his head back around when he noticed a second column of smoke. The cold weight in his stomach seemed to spread until his entire torso felt numb. He stood frozen, staring at the smoke as he tried to come up with a reason why. He was used to cold, of course, but this felt different. It was almost as if what little warmth he had left in his body was being sucked dry, leaving him as just a shell of a man. The thought absolutely terrified him.

His feet finally unfroze from the ground, propelling him toward the second column of smoke only to stop short as all the breath left him when a petite blonde woman sprawled seemingly unconscious on the forest floor came into view. Jerking forward, he fell to his knees beside the prone form to see dark hazel eyes blinking up at the sky, slowly focusing on his face.

"Hey," he called softly. "Can you hear me?"

Her eyes began to droop.

"Hey, hey. None of that." Ty pressed his palm against her cheek, hoping to get a response. Any response. It seemed to have the opposite effect than what he wanted. Her eyes fluttered before closing and she turned slightly, nuzzling into his hand. As much as he could, he ignored the shock of electricity that ran up his arm at the gesture. Her head lulled away from him as she finally lost consciousness, making his heart drop.

"Oh God, no." Spinning around he called out to his brother, "Mike! Help!"

"What–" Mike cut off when he noticed the woman out cold. "Bloody hell! Who the hell is this?"

"I don't know!" Ty shifted, gently lifting the woman's head and resting it on his lap. "I just found her like this!"

"Do you think she saw something?" for the first time Anders almost sounded unsure of himself.

Ty felt himself pale as he gazed down at the woman. She seemed harmless enough. Small yet curvy, pale skin, light honey blonde hair in loose curls falling like a halo around her head, nondescript clothing – jeans skirt with dark purple tights, ankle boots, pink tank top, leather jacket – and a brace on her left wrist. Could one beautiful ordinary diminutive woman ruin everything for them?

"Um, guys?" Axl hesitantly called. Ty turned to see him, now dressed, standing a couple feet away with a professional looking camera in his hand, a bag at his feet.

"Where'd you get that?" Mike asked.

"It was lying here."

"Shit," Anders sighed. "It's hers isn't it?"

"Let's not jump to conclusions," Mike rationalized, taking the digital camera from Axl and slowly looking at the pictures it held. Ty turned back to the woman resting in his lap, gently tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. He didn't know why but he felt a sort of connection with this woman, like a magnetic pull dragging him towards her, keeping him transfixed. And yet, he didn't feel worried like he ought to. He felt calm, relaxed, more at peace than he had in a long time. Not since his own twenty-first.

"Well," Mike's voice brought him back. "If this is hers, she didn't take any pictures."

"Okay, so what do we do?" Ty asked, fighting the need to hold the woman closer. What the hell was wrong with him?

Mike looked over to where Olaf still lay, mostly passed out. "Axl and I will take Olaf back to my house. You two take her back to Ty's and stay there. Call if anything changes. We'll figure it out later."

Ty nodded. As Anders took the bag and camera from Mike, he gently slid his arms under the woman's back and knees, holding her tightly to his chest as he stood up. She fit perfectly against him, her head falling naturally against his neck. He inhaled, breathing in the spicy sweet scent that clung to her. It soothed him while stoking a fire in his belly he couldn't even have dreamt of. Never had he felt the same and yet utterly different. He felt…complete. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks, startling him as he walked beside Anders to his van. How could a woman he had yet to speak to properly make him feel this way? It just wasn't right. What was wrong with him?

The shorter man opened the passenger door and allowed Ty to place the woman in the middle seat before climbing in. Ty hurriedly got into the driver's seat and started the car, following Mike's car out of the woods and towards civilization.

* * *

Anders eyed the small woman next to him. Yes, she was so small she even made _him_ feel big. Kind of a nice change of pace. Not that he didn't love tall women. He loved _all_ women. But it was hard to find someone that actually made him feel less like a dwarf. This woman did that easily, she was so small.

"Who do you think she is?" he asked out loud, not really caring for an answer, but the silence had been killing him.

Ty shrugged. Helpful as always.

The girl chose that moment to mumble in her sleep and shift slightly, causing her to slip to the side and fall onto Ty's shoulder. Automatically, the younger Johnson moved his arm so that he held her against him more comfortably. He didn't even glance down as the girl snuggled closer.

Anders smirked, "Well it doesn't seem to matter to you."

No answer.

"I mean if you want to be left alone when we get back…"

No answer.

"Of course, it could be a little awkward – her being unconscious and all."

"Shut up, Anders," Ty finally snapped.

"Oh, so he does speak!" Anders was cut off from saying more by a sharp pain in his shin. He hissed, looking down to see the woman had kicked out in her sleep, the heel of her boot colliding harshly with his bone. Ty chuckled, tightening his hold on the woman briefly. Anders didn't say a word the rest of the trip.

* * *

It was quickly agreed that they'd put the woman in Ty's room on the second floor. There was no way to leave except to pass through the living room where the two brothers would be posted so they'd know immediately if she tried to leave without them talking to her first.

As Ty tucked her into bed, taking more care than necessary, Anders went through her bag again. Ty ignored him, focusing on making the woman as comfortable as possible. He didn't know why it was so important to make sure she was comfortable, but it was. He took off her boots, placing them by the bed, followed by her jacket which he tossed over his desk chair, taking extra care not to jostle her injured wrist. Pulling the blanket up around her, he gently reached up to brush her hair out of her face. It was hard to believe their whole lives were in the hands of this one woman. She just looked too gentle, almost angelic lying amongst his blankets and pillows, to be this level of a threat.

"Aha!" Anders voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He turned to see the older, shorter man holding up a wallet. "Let's see who she is, shall we?"

Ty didn't want to invade the woman's privacy, but they really needed to know. He refused to admit that he may have a more personal ulterior motive in this. Cautious not to disturb the sleeping woman, he stood from the bed and walked over by Anders who was standing by the desk in the corner.

"Jane Coburn," Anders read off an international driver's license. Ty took it from him looking at the tiny picture of the woman on his bed. She looked good even in the license. How unfair was that?

"And a passport," Anders said pulling that out as well. He handed the bag to his younger brother as he flipped through the pages, whistling lowly, "She's quite the little traveler. Chile, Guam, South Africa, India, England, Ireland, Germany, Iceland, Switzerland, Italy. Last stop was Greece before she came here. Who_ is_ this woman?"

Ty didn't say anything, taking out her camera to look through the pictures himself. Mostly, they were just pictures of the scenery around New Zealand. Places he'd seen his entire life, captured in a way he could hardly believe. It looked like a whole new world through the camera lens, reality morphing into a beautiful fantasy land. It nearly took his breath away.

He continued looking through the stills until he came to some that was clearly from Greece. The water, the sun, the buildings, the people, everything was absolutely gorgeous. Who would trade that for dreary New Zealand? Then he came upon a photo of Jane and a chiseled Greek man, lounging on the beach together. She had on a slightly baggy t-shirt with a bikini top poking out, her blonde locks tied messily back and a huge smile on her face. She was leaning back against the man's bare chest and he had his arms tightly wound around her waist. Clearly, something was between the two. Anger bubbled up in Ty's stomach, making him want to throw the camera against the wall as hard as he could. Instead, he turned it off and shoved it roughly back in the bag before dropping it all on the ground beside the bed. Anders quirked an eyebrow at him but said nothing.

Anger and (strangely) hurt and pain still waged a battle in him, so much so that Ty had to turn away from the woman and head downstairs. He still had some work to do before the party tonight. Now seemed like the perfect time to do it.

He tried his best to ignore Anders following him down the stairs and into his freezer/workshop where he kept his ice sculptures and tools. Although he hated it, Anders followed him in there too. Ty continued to pay him little attention as he quickly gathered what he needed and began shaping the block of ice on his worktable into an angel.

Shivering in the corner, Anders could only keep quiet for so long, "What was that all about?"

"What was what about?" Ty muttered, not looking up.

Anders scoffed, "Fine then. It's too cold in here to argue. I'll go sit out where it's warmer and make sure the princess doesn't escape her tower."

Ty rolled his eyes, listening as his older brother left, the door swinging closed behind him. He sighed and set down the tools. He couldn't concentrate and the only thing that was doing was making the angel lopsided. Rubbing a hand across his face, he sighed again. What was wrong with him? So what, a woman he never met was with a man while in Greece. What did that matter to him? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. So why couldn't he quench the fire rolling in his belly? His mind refused to show him anything but the sight of Jane Coburn looking undeniably perfect in his bed, almost as though she _belonged_ there.

He shook his head to try to rid himself of such thoughts. There was only one explanation for why he was being like this. Obviously this was all because of last night. Yet another woman who "just wanted to be friends". It was disturbing how many women in the past had told him that. Clearly it had messed with his head, if he was feeling jealous over a woman he'd never spoken to. God, he needed therapy.

* * *

The first thing Jane realized was that she was far, far too comfortable to be on the forest floor anymore, despite that being the last place she remembered being. Turning to her side, she snuggled into the pillow under her head, still half asleep. The scent that clung to the fabric brought to mind a cold winter night in the woods covered in snow and ice. It made her want to sink further into the blankets and drift back to sleep, but a slight throbbing in her arm made that impossible. She had intended to get home within an hour or so in order to take the pain meds prescribed by the doctor at the hospital. Going by the pulsing sensation under the thick brace, that time had long passed.

Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to wake up more without actually opening her eyes. She listened carefully for anyone in the room. The only sound she could hear was the quiet ticking of a clock nearby. Assured that she was alone, Jane cracked her eyes open. Yep, definitely alone. Quietly as possible, she sat up and looked around. Her bag and shoes were beside the bed, her jacket hanging off a chair. Okay, so whoever had brought her here – and she had the sneaking suspicion it was those Norse Gods she'd been watching – had for some odd reason decided to take care of her. She'd question it later. More than likely they were freaking out over some random chick stumbling upon their ceremony, which may or may not end well for Jane despite them taking care of her this far.

Crawling to the end of the bed, she pulled up her bag and quickly shifted through all her belongings. Everything seemed to be there though clearly moved around like someone had gone through her things. She couldn't really blame them for doing that – she probably would have done the same if she was in their position. Jane sat on the edge of the bed as she shoved on her boots before hopping up and throwing on her jacket. She grabbed her bag, pulling it over her shoulder as she crept silently to the door, peaking out to check the hall. Male voices drifted up from downstairs, though she couldn't distinguish any words. Slowly she slipped out the door, gently tugging it closed behind her as to not make too much noise. Her mind was whirring with ideas of escape, ways of getting out unseen, but she really couldn't come up with anything solid until she knew what she was working with.

Crouched low, she made her way over to balcony overlooking the first floor. Down below, two men she remembered from the woods were sitting on a couch, a television playing in the background as they seemingly fought about something. The space behind them was filled with row after row of refrigerators. That was…weird. But what really interested her was the door just beyond that, light just visible coming through the bottom crack revealing that it did, in fact, lead outside. It would be incredibly difficult to get past her guards, however, so after some reflection, Jane began to back away only to freeze when one of the guys jumped up, yelling at the other.

"Oh, grow up, Anders!" the dark haired man stormed away. Even from this distance she could see the fierce scowl on his face.

Jane stayed frozen in her spot near the balcony, listening for any sign that either man was coming upstairs. When she heard a door close and Anders was still sitting on the couch, smirking and drinking from a glass bottle (Jane had to fight the irrational urge to run down there and smack that look off his face), she quietly moved away, staying low in case Anders looked up. The only place she had to go was back into the room.

She chewed her lip nervously as she surveyed her surroundings. The room was average sized, square shaped, well furnished, tidy. Basically the total opposite of what Jane thought of when she imagined a man's bedroom, especially a bachelor. Well, she assumed he was a bachelor. There wasn't any sign of a female presence that she could see. (And she was _not_ happy about that. At all.) Anyway, there were two average windows on the wall behind the bed. She looked out one to see a van parked just below and a drainpipe running down along the side of the building. Sighing, she closed her eyes and shook her head. This had to be the worst plan she'd ever thought of, but at the moment she was kind of low on options. Sure, she could _try_ to sneak out the front door, but this way had a higher chance of her getting away clean and thus giving her a head start. Hopefully she'd be able to figure out exactly who they were, how she could have run into freaking Norse Gods on one of the first days here, and what she was supposed to do now, before they tracked her down and started asking hard questions.

Decision made, Jane pushed open the window and looked about, making sure the coast was clear. Carefully she sat on the ledge and swung one leg out (_don't look down, don't look down, don't look down_) before easing herself further out. She had to quickly grab onto the pipe before vertigo hit her. Even so, she felt a little dizzy as she began to shimmy her way down until she dropped onto the roof of the van where it was parked too close to the wall to squeeze by. She took a deep steadying breath in an attempt to slow her heart. Her hand was throbbing in earnest now, protesting having to be used while climbing down. Careful not to make too much noise, she slid down off the van onto the concrete, not wasting a second in jogging away, thankful for her daily runs that gave her the stamina to run all the way back home.


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow, I am so much happier with this chapter! Not really what I had planned, but I think it turned out great! Thanks so much to those of you who have reviewed. You honestly were the only ones keeping me from wanting to give up on this story...well that and I really really love this show and it just doesn't get enough love here. But yeah, you guys keep me going. =D**

**Disclaimer: we all know I'm only on this sight cuz I don't have any rights to anything...including Almighty Johnsons**

_Bitterly cold wind bit at his exposed flesh as he jogged lightly through the desolate forest, snow crunching beneath his boots with every step. His breath came out in white puffy clouds, each exhale floating up around his head before dissipating into the winter wind. He was sweaty and grimy from battle, blood coated his skin in the most uncomfortable places and gore splattered across his breastplate. Even the dark tangled beard was matted with the remains of his so-called enemy. The moment the dust had settled and he'd been given leave, he'd run out of there, desperate to be away from the horrors of what he and the others had done. God of the cold and dark he may be, but he was hardly a warrior. He had answered the call to war like every other Norse God, but that didn't mean he enjoyed a minute of it. He'd be much better off once Odin and Zeus got their heads out of their asses and realized how ridiculous this war really was. A war that started over nothing more than rumors of one or both of them sleeping with the other's wife. They were both players of the grandest kind and every being on Earth and in the Heavens knew this. It was insane to sacrifice lives for something they had both been doing for years. Hodr was fairly certain there were ulterior motives coming into play, but to voice those opinions could be called treason, so he wisely kept his head down and continued to do his duty until he was no longer needed and free to go on his own way._

_Until then, Hodr had a limited amount of time to get cleaned up and relaxed before he was called to arms once more. He intended to use that time in a small cabin located far enough away from the prying humans and nosey Gods that he'd be completely alone for the first time in months. Just what he needed. Before the war with the Greeks, Hodr had always wandered off alone for long stretches of time, his ability to chill a room just by entering it making him a bit of a loner. But now, what with constantly being housed with his brothers-and-sisters-in-arms he felt like he could never find a moment for himself. He was desperate for some silence, even if it meant cutting himself off from the rest of the world entirely for as long as possible._

_A grin slowly spread across his haggard face as the small cabin (really it was more of a hut but he didn't need much on his own) came into view. His sanctuary. Peace and quiet and solitude wrapped up in one tiny building. Thank the Heavens no one else knew of this place._

_Or so he thought._

_A crash echoed from inside, followed by a feminine shriek – and not the happy kind. Hodr froze just within the tree line, dark eyes scanning the area for signs of an ambush, his war-ridden instincts kicking in and telling him not to enter his hidden home until he was sure he could get the upper hand if or when necessary. The forest around him was silent as if sensing the danger nearby. A set of footprints led from the other edge of the trees to the door of the cabin, a long track running alongside them as if the person had dragged something with them. A cold lump of dread settled in Hodr's stomach as his mind began to put two and two together. Hunching over to hopefully keep himself hidden as long as he could, he hurried closer to the cabin, stopping under the small solitary window beside the front door. He could see now that the prints in the snow were that of a man's. This was only confirmed when a deep baritone drifted through the cracked window._

"_Why are you fighting this?" the man asked, sighing in exasperation._

"_Oh what?" a female answered bitingly. "I should just lay here and let you have your way is that it?" Hodr tensed, his hand automatically going to the sword at his hip. It seemed he was destined to shed some more blood tonight. "I don't care if your wife is cheating on you with a thousand men! You will _not_ have me!"_

_The man sighed again, "I'm afraid you have little choice in the matter."_

_The sound of a fight broke out suddenly and Hodr wasted no time jumping up and ramming into the door, causing it to slam into the wall before breaking off the hinges and dropping to the dusty floor. His eyes quickly drank in the scene before him. A small slip of a woman was huddled in the corner, valiantly fighting off her attacker, enormous by any standards, made even worse by the golden garbs signifying him as one of the Gods – a Greek no less. Hodr saw red. For a man of his standing to be attacking a woman in the middle of nowhere, using his wife's debauchery and (no doubt) the war as an excuse…Hodr would be damned if he would sit by and let this happen._

_Lunging forward, his free hand grabbed hold of the God's long tangled black hair and yanked him off the woman so hard he nearly took out a wall. As it was, there would now be a lovely Greek God imprint in the wood. He took a moment to assess the woman's injuries and started when he realized she too had on the God's golden robes. He quickly shook off his shock. Goddess or human, it was wrong to attack a female and he wouldn't stand for it. Especially not in his home._

_Before he could truly get a good look at her, however, he felt himself being lifted and tossed outside like a rag doll. The snow did nothing to cushion his fall, the impact just as painful as if he'd landed on hard ground. Luckily the cold never penetrated very deep, or he'd be freezing to death as well seeing as the snow that had flown upwards on impact nearly buried him when gravity took hold. He sat up, quickly unearthing himself as the God (he really didn't care which one it was) came thundering out of the cabin, a war cry filling the air. Hodr sneered, jumping to his feet as he brought his sword back up and shifted into a fighting stance. The Greek barreling toward him seemed to be all rage, no tact whatsoever. It was a simple matter of ducking around the meaty fists and bringing his sword around at the right moments and right angles. He'd never been one for strategy or war, merely following the orders his superiors gave him, but he suddenly felt a flow of understanding for both as he moved forward to attack. His mind easily supplied what needed to be done to end this quickly and before long the Greek was lying on the ground, the snow around him steadily growing red as he drowned in his own blood. _

_Hodr took a moment to wipe his sword clean before turning toward the cabin only to freeze as he noticed for the first time that the Goddess had followed them out, stepping barefoot into the snow, her golden robes billowing around her slightly in the chilly wind. He noticed she was taller than he thought when she was cowering from the monster of a God he'd just slain, her head held high with calm confidence despite the cut on her forehead only just beginning to stop bleeding. Bruises in the shape of handprints tainted her arms and she sported a split lip and black eye. Still, Hodr couldn't help but note her beauty. Long raven hair fell in perfect disarray around her shoulders and wide dark eyes steadily gazed at him, not flinching from his surely hellish appearance. Her skin was flawless porcelain, flushed from the cold and her lips were plump and pink. Hodr found himself nervously licking his own chapped lips as he slowly approached her, not wanting to scare her._

"_It seems I owe you a debt of gratitude," she said quietly, though her voice rang with an authority that refused to be dismissed._

"_You owe me nothing," he assured her gruffly. It would only be a complication to have a Greek feel indebted to him._

_She tilted her head, studying him, "And yet you have it."_

_He sighed, letting it go for now. This woman seemed stubborn and he didn't have the energy for a verbal battle after the day he'd had. "You should go inside before you freeze. It's about to snow again."_

_She tilted her head back to look at the darkening sky and Hodr winced at the now unobstructed view of her bruises as her hair fell away. It seemed she'd been nearly strangled as well. "I should return to Olympus before I am missed." She sighed as she eyed the body. "And Aphrodite should know about this. There's no love lost between the two, but he was still her husband."_

_Hodr turned back to the body, information coming back to him from the time when relations between the Greeks and the Norse Gods were better and he'd had to learn all the political standings in order to not make a fool of himself at the mandatory meetings. Aphrodite's husband was Hephaestus, the God of fire and the forge. It was well known that Aphrodite, Goddess of beauty, love, and desire, often cheated on him simply because of his deformity. It seemed the poor man had finally snapped. Unfortunately for him, he snapped in the wrong place. Hodr still firmly believed he had no right to attack the Goddess before him. _

_He looked back at the Goddess, noticing anew how disheveled she looked. If she returned to Olympus like that, he doubted anyone would believe that she got away in time. His stomach twisted with the thought of what would have happened if he'd arrived just a second later. "Come inside," he reiterated, his tone implying he wasn't taking no for an answer. "Warm up. Clean up a bit. You don't want to worry anyone by looking like that, do you?" Okay, so he was being a bit crass, but he didn't think she'd listen any other way._

_She quirked an eyebrow, the corner of her mouth twitching up, "What are you saying, exactly? Is there something wrong with how I look?"_

_Hodr fought a smile at the teasing lilt the conversation had taken. It seemed she wasn't offended by his frank comment, so he'd try again. "You look like hell. Get inside."_

_She threw her head back as a laugh was ripped from her, "Have you looked in a mirror?" She continued to chuckle, but turned back to the relative warmth of the cabin. It was warmer than out in the open anyway._

_He followed her in, feeling more light than he had in a long time. The only time he spent around others lately was when they were preparing for battle, and then was hardly time to joke. It felt nice to let his guard down a little and simply enjoy another's company. He wasn't a social creature by nature, but even he needed someone occasionally. This Goddess may be a Greek and therefore an enemy by default, but they had been brought together by fate and bonded over horrible circumstances and for the time being, he knew he could trust her. At least until she returned to her people and him to his. _

_Once inside, Hodr picked up the broken door and replaced it, hoping it would at least keep out some of the chill. For her. He never felt the cold. Turning, he found the Goddess crouched in front of the small fireplace he never used, lighting the wood he couldn't recall bringing in. When she glanced up at him she smiled sheepishly._

"_I stumbled across this place a while ago after a particularly bad battle. I was wounded badly and needed a place to lie low for a while. No one seemed to be using it. I thought it was abandoned."_

_He nodded in understanding, lowering himself onto the pile of furs that made up his bed. It was across the small room from her, hopefully giving her enough space so as to make his true intentions clear and not freeze her with the natural chill that always rolled off him in waves. "I've hardly had opportunity to use it since the war broke out. But why were you here now? And, more importantly, why was Hephaestus?"_

_She exhaled loudly, her sharp eyes studying him for a long minute before she answered, "I didn't intend on coming here at all, merely passed by on my way…I can't explain. It involves some very…sensitive information."_

_He nodded in understanding as she paused, gesturing for her to continue._

"_As for Hephaestus, he followed me. It seems he caught his wife with another God earlier today and was in a bit of a blind rage."_

_He scoffed, "A bit?"_

_Her lips curled up slightly as she settled back more comfortably against the fireplace, the glow of the fire casting shadows across her features. "Okay, maybe more than a bit."_

_He scoffed again, rolling his eyes._

_She giggled, shaking her head at him, "Honestly, he and I never got along well and I had already angered him earlier this week…" she trailed off, shrugging._

"_That's hardly an excuse for what he did," Hodr bit out angrily. Was she really trying to defend him?_

"_No, it's not. But I'm sure that was his reasoning. What little he had, anyway."_

_He sighed, deciding to drop the subject. It hardly mattered now. He motioned to the second door in the room, "The wash room is through there if you wish to clean up. Though I warn you, the water is probably freezing."_

_She smirked as she stood, "I would expect no less from Hodr, God of all things cold and dark."_

_His eyebrows shot up to his hairline, "You know who I am?"_

"_I figured it out," she shrugged. "It wasn't too difficult."_

_Glancing around the place he supposed she was right. It was rather dark and cold in here, as it always was and always would be. "And you are?"_

_She paused on the threshold of the washroom, looking over a slim shoulder, "You don't know?"_

_Honestly, he hadn't even thought about it. "No."_

_She simply smiled and closed the door behind her. Clearly she wanted him to figure it out on his own. Insufferable woman. He grinned._

_After she quickly made herself more presentable, it was Hodr's turn to wash up. It took considerably longer for him to wash off all the blood that had now dried to almost every part of his exposed body. He tore off his breastplate, tossing it into the corner to clean and polish later. When he'd gotten as clean as possible, his skin rubbed raw, he stayed hunched over the wash basin, unable to raise his head and look himself in the eye. After everything he'd done, all the people he'd harmed, he found it hard to look at himself. Perhaps after the war, after he had time to heal. But for now, he refused to see the monster he'd turned into._

"_Everything alright in there?" a female voice called teasingly through the door with just a small edge of worry, snapping him back to reality. _

_Without answering, he opened the door, stepping back into the main room. She was closer than he'd thought, causing her to stumble back to get out of his way. Automatically, he reached out to steady her, his large hands wrapping around her slim waist and tugging her upright again. Her hands fell naturally to his bare shoulders, bracing herself. She blinked up at him in shock but neither stepped back, their faces mere inches from each other. He could feel her hot breath ghost across his neck and shivered at the feeling. The cold was so much a part of him that he often forgot what it felt to really feel warmth, but never had he hungered for it as he did in that moment. Every part of the Goddess that touched him seemed to sear into him, marking him, and he knew he'd never be able to forget this feeling. A connection seemed to grow, bonding him to her irrevocably, but instead of worrying him like he _knew_ it should, he simply felt at peace. He sighed, gripping her tighter, not wanting to let go ever again. One of her small hands reached up, cupping his cheek and he felt the burn follow. He nuzzled her palm, tangling his straggly beard in her fingers._

"_Athena," she whispered. "I'm Athena."_

Ty jolted awake. After finally forcing himself to join his brother, he'd sat anxiously in the armchair next to couch where Anders had taken up residence, staring blankly at the TV. He hadn't realized he'd dosed off at some point but looking at the clock on the wall, he realized they only had a couple hours left until Axl's party. And they still needed to think of what to do with the woman now in his room.

"Well hello there, Sleeping Beauty," Anders smirked at him from where he lounged casually across the entire couch. How a man that small could take up a space meant for three people baffled Ty. "Did you know you talk in your sleep?"

Ty rolled his eyes. Of course he knew. Anders had been the first one to point it out, after all. He couldn't understand why the older man felt the need to continue to point it out though. "What'd I say this time?" he asked drowsily, standing up to stretch out his stiff back muscles.

Anders brow furrowed, all traces of teasing suddenly gone, "Something about a bastard attacking someone, and a war, then there was something about warmth."

Ty flushed as his dream came flooding back to him. He couldn't remember ever having a dream so vivid, so _real_. It was almost like it actually happened. He had felt everything, seen everything, smelt and heard everything like he was actually there. Like a memory. His stomach dropped. Had it been a memory? Had he really had a memory of when he was Hodr? That had never happened before. If it was true, what did it mean? And why had there been Greek Gods? As far as he knew, the Greeks weren't real. Then again most believed Norse Gods weren't either.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Ty turned back to his brother changing the subject to distract himself before he went into a full on panic attack. He'd just have to ask Olaf about all this later. But for now, there were more important things to think of.

"Has she woken up yet?" he asked, trying to sound casual. The last thing he needed was _Anders_ poking around in his business and/or making fun of his possible mental breakdown.

The older Johnson eyed his brother for a while, making him nervous, before shrugging and taking a long draw from his beer, "Haven't heard a peep."

His brow furrowed. All this time and she hadn't even stirred? That didn't seem right. "I'm gonna go check on her."

Anders smirked but didn't say anything as Ty took the stairs two at a time. Something just didn't feel right about this and there was an uncomfortable lump of dread settled deep in his gut. He hurried into his room only to freeze immediately. The bed was empty. A quick glance around told him the jacket, shoes, and bag were all missing as well. Swearing loudly, he spun around, snatching his phone from his desk as he darted back down the stairs.

"Did you leave or fall asleep at any point today?" he snapped at his brother.

Anders looked slightly insulted, "No. _You're_ the one that passed out like a drunkard."

Ty rolled his eyes, "Are you sure?"

"Ty," the older man sighed, exasperated. "What is this about?"

He ignored him, already dialing Mike on his phone. Anders grumbled something unintelligible while the phone ringed down the line. Ty squeezed his eyes shut, mentally begging Mike to answer the phone. This was really, really bad. But deep down, Ty couldn't feel the type of worry he knew he should be. He should be anxious for his family, worried that this mysterious woman would report what she saw, that their whole lives could be torn away from them. But he wasn't. Oh, he was worried sick, no doubt about it, but not about any of that. He wasn't worried about Jane Coburn. No. He was worried _for_ her. Horrible visions of what could have happened to her kept running through his head all the while he tried to think of how exactly she could have left without Anders noticing.

Finally, Mike picked up, breaking through his morbid thoughts, "Hello?"

"Mike," Ty said slowly, unsure of how to tell him. "We have a problem."

He sighed heavily, "Not another one."

Maybe it was best just to be blunt. "She's gone."

There was a beat of silence before Mike and Anders yelled in tandem, "What!" Okay, maybe not.


	4. Chapter 4

**Finally! Another chapter! This story really is taking a long time to crank out. Sorry to anyone who is waiting. **

**Weird side note: I rewatched the first episode, and noticed that the fist scene that each brother has involves a girl. Axl nearly gets run over by what's her face. Mike and Valerie get all lovey dovey. Ty gets dumped. And Anders gets laid. It really says a lot about their personalities, doesn't it?**

**Disclaimer: So not mine. Sad, but true.**

Jane's breath came out in pants, her shoes making light slapping noises against the pavement as she pushed herself to move faster. Under the brace, her arm was steadily throbbing now, making her grit her teeth and making it harder to breathe. Her bag kept hitting her hip with every step she took, adding to her discomfort. All she wanted to do was get home, shower off all the gross feeling from the day and pop some pain medicine. Then she and Ariel could decide how to handle this new development. If she had known about those damn Gods, Jane wouldn't have suggested going to New Zealand, no matter how much she'd been wanting to visit. She'd had enough of Gods in Greece, thank you very much.

Darting into a park, Jane came to a halt at a bench to catch her breath. She was quite a ways away from where she'd started. She'd just barely had the mind to glance back to check where she was before it was out of sight. _Johnson Refrigeration Services_ was apparently her captors' choice of a hideout. She shrugged mentally, making a note to look up the owners of that place. Chances were they had some sort of connection to the Gods. Digging into her bag for her phone, she decided to do that now.

The place didn't have a website, which was annoying, but apparently another "Johnson" business had a connection to it because she found a PR company on the first page of Google. In the owner's bio, she found that he (Anders Johnson) had a brother (Ty Johnson) who owned a fridge repair shop. That must be it. And it seemed she had found the Gods.

* * *

It took a while, but Olaf finally woke up. They found him dancing in the middle of the living room, half naked, with a lamp. Axl's friends stood around him laughing and cheering until Mike was able to usher him away, Ty, Axl, and Anders not far behind.

Ty stood shifting from foot to foot in the garage, staring at his grandfather as the man leaned against Mike's work table, smoking weed without a care in the world. How could he be so calm? Well, Ty supposed the weed had a lot to do with it, but still. First, Axl may be Odin, and everyone there (besides Axl obviously) knew what that meant. And then, they still had Jane Coburn to worry about. And Ty wasn't even going to acknowledge the fact that he still remembered her name as though he'd known her for years. Right now, he really needed to concentrate on the bigger picture, even if it did go against his gut instincts.

Mike shifted, motioning to Olaf, urging him to talk.

"Is he Odin, or not?" Anders asked, sipping his beer.

"If Axl is the new Odin," Olaf said slowly, "All the signs–"

"What signs?" Axl interrupted nervously.

"Oh, I'm getting to the signs."

"No pressure, Olaf, just…" Mike trailed off, gesturing for him to continue while shooting a glare at Axl to shut him up.

Olaf took a deep breath, "First sign, _fire in the night sky for seven nights before he returns_."

Ty thought back to the shooting stars that had been visible the last few nights. Had it been a full week? Maybe. He wasn't sure.

Clearly Axl thought so. "They're a sign?" he asked incredulously.

"Not necessarily," Olaf corrected.

"But you just said they were."

"Will you let me finish?" Axl glanced down, looking rightfully chastised before Olaf continued, "Sign number two, _the earth shall tremble on the day of his arrival_."

"The earthquake," Axl said before Ty could. It was a little strange that they had one. As far as he knew they weren't on any fault lines. Then again, it could be a coincidence. Just because he couldn't remember the last time they had one doesn't make them immune to quakes.

"Yes," Olaf nodded, getting Axl excited. "But it still means nothing without sign number three. _The seas run red as if with blood_. No way has that come to pass."

Ty sucked in a shocked breath, "Uh…"

"What?"

Ty quickly described the red tint he'd seen on the sea during his morning run. The news had claimed it had something to do with algae or something like that. Honestly, he hadn't really paid much attention. He wasn't really one for all that science-y stuff.

"Okay," Olaf brushed it off while Mike looked between his brothers, worried. "But even that doesn't count as a sign unless the next sign happens. Otherwise it's just…freaky shit."

"What's the next sign?" Mike asked.

"_The sun shall rise on the sign of Odin, written large upon the slopes of fire, for all to know that he returns_."

"And what is the sign of Odin?"

"The Valknut," Olaf answered, taking another drag.

"Like a walnut?" Axl asked, confused.

Olaf shook his head, "It's a symbol. Triangles all…mixed up."

"Oh!"

Ty turned to look at Anders's shocked expression as the shorter man explained his latest marketing campaign. He scowled at his brother, "What a dick."

Anders glared back, "I was flogging booze to the masses. How was I meant to know I was fulfilling a prophecy?"

"Prophecy?" Axl cut in excitedly. "Cool!"

"No, not cool," Mike tried to calm him down.

"And not fulfilled," Olaf, oddly enough, was the one to bring them all back on topic. "Not until the last sign. _When he returns, he will have two hearts. The heart of man, and the heart of the earth._"

"Am I some kind of genetic freak?"

"Do you have to hearts?" Olaf asked like it was an everyday question.

"Of course I don't have two hearts!"

"What about a tattoo of a heart, plus your actually heart?" Anders asked, voice slightly teasing, though the others could tell he was serious.

"No," Axl scoffed before turning excitedly to the family oracle. "But if I got a tattoo of a heart, would that make me Odin?"

"I have no idea."

Everyone made various noises of exasperation at Olaf's response. Ty shifted slightly away from his brothers, licking his lips as he thought. What on earth could that last sign possibly mean? And did he really want to find out? Axl could have a fairly normal life if he didn't become like them. A life that didn't revolve around this soul crushing secret. A life Ty desperately wanted. If he was lucky, Axl could breeze by this without having to go down the incredibly lonely road his family was on.

The youngest Johnson didn't seem agree with Ty's thinking. "I want to be _someone_," he whined. "So far this whole 'being a God' thing sucks. You guys, you can do something. Even if it is just to give chicks pointy nipples."

Ty immediately turned to Anders, crossing his arms with a glare, "Oh, you had to go there, didn't you?"

"Me?" Axl continued his rant, ignoring his brothers, "Apparently I haven't even got the right number of hearts." No one stopped him as he stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

Mike sighed, scrubbing a hand down his face.

Anders took a long gulp of beer before saying what they were all thinking, "That went well."

"Shut up, Anders," Ty muttered, running a hand over his scalp. This was all just too much for one day. He couldn't even comprehend how Axl was taking it. Not well, obviously, but hopefully he wouldn't do anything too stupid. The boy was just a little too much like Anders for Ty's comfort.

"I'll talk to him later," Mike muttered, straightening his shoulders and turning towards his younger brothers with a frown. "Now, about that girl. What did you say her name was?"

"Jane Coburn," Ty said quietly. He shrugged, "Don't really know much else other than that."

"I do," Anders smirked. "After her little disappearing act, I decided to look her up when I got to my office. She's a professional photographer, mostly for nature magazines and things like that, though she does good architectural shots as well. Actually, it'd be good to get her for that cruise line campaign that I got last week."

"Can you please focus?" Ty growled, ignoring that little voice in his head that wanted him to tear his brother limb from limb just for _thinking_ about going _near_ Jane. It wasn't logical, or in any way healthy. Yeah, best to ignore it and hope it goes away.

"Ouch, that's cold," Anders grinned.

Ty sighed and shook his head, not wanting to get into it at this moment. There were more important things right now.

"Right. Well, we need to figure out how we want to go about this. We can't just let her go off with any sort of knowledge of us. One little thing…" Mike sighed. "Anders, can you find her?"

Ty gritted his teeth to stop the curse he wanted to direct at his brothers. The room however dropped several degrees. Olaf, still shirtless, seemed to be the only one who noticed however, shooting Ty a questioning look over Mike's head as the two eldest Johnson brothers began discussing ways to find the girl without involving any mortals. Ty took a deep breath, trying to rain in the cold, trap in within himself again. It was far from comfortable, bringing the chill into his body, his flesh and bones freezing and locking painfully before they adjusted once more to the dangerously low temperature. Even after the room returned to a normal temperature, Olaf continued at stare curiously at Ty until the younger man was shifting nervously under his gaze.

It was quickly (and grudgingly) agreed that Anders would have to use his work resources to track down their missing photographer. Ty wasn't happy and Mike looked like he was doubting his logic, but it was done. Olaf seemed to be the only one completely unworried about Jane. When Mike asked him if he knew anything, the bald man simply shrugged lightly and took a long drag. Mike rolled his eyes and followed Anders back to the party. Ty hesitated, glancing nervously between his grandfather and the door.

Olaf chuckled, "Is there something you needed to ask?"

Ty sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly, "It's just been a long day."

He nodded in agreement, not saying anything as the much younger man gathered his thoughts.

"It's…something happened," Ty finally forced out. "Nothing really…important, but it sort of…freaked me out…a bit."

Olaf continued to smoke, gazing at Ty like he knew exactly what he was hinting at but wanted the other man to say it himself.

"Earlier, I, um, may have fell asleep. I had this…dream. But it felt more like a memory…" Gods, he sounded like an idiot.

"It was of before. When you were Hodr," Olaf guessed, causing Ty to stop short.

"Y-Yeah," he frowned. "How'd you guess?"

Olaf waved away the question, "It's nothing to worry about. But it'll happen again. Probably to the others too. It is memories though, just to let you know." He took one last long drag before putting out the blunt and tossing it in the trash. "I'm going to get something to eat." And with that, Olaf walked out of the room, his head popping back in a second later, "I think Mike needs you."

Ty rolled his eyes, watching Olaf stumble to the backyard before pushing his way through the crowd to where Mike and Anders were in the living room, talking to Axl's flatmates. Brow furrowed, he joined his brothers in time to hear Gaia explain how Axl had left with one of Anders's vodka girls. His scowl deepened as he followed Mike out the front door, Anders dragging behind, chugging a beer.

"Axl scored on his birthday. Big ups to him," Anders drawled, still drinking as they came to a stop beside the street. Ty looked up and down the road, hoping to see some sort of sign of where his little brother went, a bad feeling settling in his gut.

"No. We need to find him," Mike muttered, looking around as well.

"Then take it away Mr. God-of-the-Hunt."

He glanced at Anders before turning back to the road, firmly making a decision. The only decision they had really. Ty watched his older brother as he closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, reaching that place deep within that they all had. That place where they kept their God abilities under lock and key (except Anders of course, who used his almost daily) in order to stay hidden amongst the mortals. When Mike opened his eyes again, Ty saw the shift. He wasn't Mike anymore, not really. He was Ullr. God of the Hunt. And right now, he was hunting Axl.

* * *

Jane and Ariel were walking through the park, the sun long since set behind the trees. They had decided to go for a walk after pacing in the living room seemed not enough for Ariel. The stress of what had happened to her big sister was just too much. Maybe they should just leave New Zealand, move on to wherever Jane's work led her. It'd be less complicated than all this. But Jane wouldn't agree to that. She wasn't one to run from her problems, no matter what. So they found themselves wandering aimlessly, trying to come up with some way to either avoid the Norse Gods altogether, or find them and let them know who they are. Ariel was hoping Jane would decide on the former. And of course Jane would make the final decision. She was best at strategy and things like that. Ariel, not so much.

Suddenly Ariel felt herself being yanked hard to the left. She stumbled as Jane dragged her bodily into a line of trees were they were sheltered from the path's line of sight while still being able to see through the branches.

"What the hell?" Ariel squeaked, using a tree to steady herself and not fall on her face.

"Shush," Jane hissed, tugging her sister closer so she could whisper while gesturing to the open space in front of them beyond the trees. "That's one of them."

Ariel's eyes widened as she looked through the branches to where a tall young guy was standing a few feet away from a woman dressed as cupid, bow and arrows included. "Cute," Ariel grinned. She glanced at her sister when she didn't get a response. Jane was frowning at the scene, brow furrowed. "What's wrong?"

Jane shook her head, staring intently ahead. A shout had Ariel whipping her head back around just as Jane gasped quietly. Ariel pressed her hand to her mouth to stifle her own shout of alarm. The woman had _shot_ the guy in the chest, his hand had gotten in the way, pinning it to his chest as well. Blood ran down the back of his hand and down his chest. His face was frozen in shock as he began to drop only to be caught by another man, whom Ariel could only assume was his brother. Two more were running up as well, one with his phone already out.

"C'mon," Jane muttered, tugging her back. Ariel followed her older sister as she jogged away, grateful for the first time ever that the older woman always made her go running in the morning. She wasn't sure where she was being led until she caught sight of the quiver of arrows. She grinned. Sometimes she really loved her sister's straight forward rules of right and wrong.

It was a long while before they stopped running. So long that Ariel had a stitch in her side and she couldn't catch her breath whatsoever. It had to have been over five miles – the longest Jane had ever forced her to run before. They stood outside of a tall fancy building their target had just run into, panting as they tried to calm their racing hearts. Ariel turned toward her sister, wondering what they were to do next. Hopefully not run. She really didn't want to run anymore today.

Without a word, Jane jogged lightly over to the side of the building, gazing up at a window on the second story that was cracked open. Ariel groaned quietly. This wasn't going to end well for her, she was sure.

Jane chuckled silently, "Just give me a boost."

Sighing in resignation, Ariel bent down with her back to the wall and helped her sister climb up onto her shoulders. Jane really wasn't that heavy. Actually she was smaller than Ariel by about three inches and about five or ten pounds lighter, so it really wasn't the problem. Ariel just really didn't like having to do shit like this. It wasn't in her nature.

The next few minutes were spent quietly contemplating how to get her sister back for this as the older woman dug in the bag she never seemed to leave the house without until she pulled out her camera. She snapped a few pictures (Ariel really didn't want to know of what or why) before signaling her desire to be let down. Once both were on solid ground they hurried away, anxious not to get caught.

"Want to tell me what's going on now?" Ariel asked once they were a few blocks from home.

"Well," Jane said, glancing around to be sure they wouldn't be overheard. "It seems the birthday boy I told you about, the one we saw get shot, is Odin."

"Is that supposed to be significant?"

"Apparently, from what I gathered, it is for them. I don't know why exactly. They didn't really say as much, but they _are_ very anxious about Odin coming back. Hence one of them trying to kill him."

"Okay, but who are they?"

"Goddesses, my guess." She shrugged. "Only reason for them to know as much as they do.

They walked in silence up their walkway to their house, Jane opening the door and allowing her younger sister in. Showering and changing for bed, it was about an hour later before Ariel wandered into the kitchen to see Jane making tea.

"What are we going to do though?" she asked quietly. "I mean we can't just not do anything."

"Don't worry," Jane motioned toward her laptop set up on the kitchen island. "I'm sending these pictures to the website I found for one of them. An Anders Johnson. I'm not going to say much, but the pictures should be enough to get the point across. Then tomorrow, we're heading back to that building and confronting those Goddesses. Not to start anything, just to see how forthcoming they are with their information."

"So we're helping them? The guys I mean."

Jane hesitated, "For now. I don't want to jump into someone else's fight, but we can't do nothing either. Not if we want to stay here for a while. And something tells me, we _need_ to be here." She sighed, rubbing her temples as a headache began to grow. "We'll just have to play this one by ear."

Ariel nodded, "If you say so. I'll tell you what though, I wouldn't mind getting to know some of those Gods. They were pretty cute."

Jane rolled her eyes, chuckling, "Of course you would. Go to sleep, Ariel. Something tells me we're both gonna need it."


End file.
